Theology Lesson #21 - The Origin and Nature of Sin
It is difficult to ignore the existence and presence of sin in the world. Sin is such a vital component of Christian theology that the apostle John stated, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 John 1:8). Anyone who denies that they sin is pulling the wool over their own eyes. By their denial, they demonstrate that they are devoid of saving truth. And again John writes, “If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:10). Denying the existence of sin is the same thing as calling God a liar (quite a heinous sin itself!). Anyone who refuses to acknowledge their sin does not have the Word dwelling in them. They aren’t saved, because they claim to not need to be saved!
However, John also writes, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). When we acknowledge our sins and agree with God that they are utterly wretched and destructive and deadly, then God is faithful (to the New Covenant) and just (because of the atonement of Christ)[1] to forgive us our sins.
1. חטא (chata) – “sin,” “miss the way,” “go wrong,” “incur guilt”
Gen 20:6, 9; 39:9; 42:22; Exod 10:16; Judge 20:16 [not miss with a sling]; Prov
19:2 [misses his way]
2. פשׁע (pasha) – “rebellion,” “trespass,” “betrayal”
1 Kings 8:50; 12:19; Psa 37:38; 51:13; Prov 18:19; Isa 1:2, 28; 43:27; 53:12
3. אבר (abar) – “to transgress,” “pass over”
Num 14:41; Judg 2:20
4. Αδικια (adikia) –
“unrighteousness,” “injustice”
Rom 1:18; 2 Thess 2:12
5. Πλαναω (planao) – “wander,”
“stray”
2 Tim 3:13; 2 Pet 3:17
6. Αμαρτια (hamartia) – “to miss the
mark,” “err,” “be mistaken”
7. Ανομια (anomia) – “lawlessness”
1 John 3:4
8. Απειθεια (apeitheia) – “disobedient,”
“willfully obstinate”
John 3:36; Rom 11:31
9. Ασεβεια (asebeia) – “ungodliness,”
“wickedness,” or “impiety.”
Jude 18
10. Παραβαινω (parabaino) – “transgression,”
“deviation”
ֹRom 2:23
THEREFORE, SIN
CAN BE DEFINED…
1.
“Sin is any lack of
conformity to God’s will in attitude, thought, or action, whether committed
actively or passively. The center of all sin is autonomy, which is the
replacing of God with self. Also closely associated with sin are pride,
selfishness, idolatry, and lack of peace (shalom).”[2]
2. “Any failure to conform to the moral law of God in
act, attitude, or nature.”[3]
3. Frame gives a little more complicated definition.
He focuses on how Scripture defines human righteousness “in three ways that
reflect God’s lordship attributes.” These are: Standard (Obedience to God’s
Law); Goal (God’s Glory); Motive (True Faith and Love). So, to define sin, he
reverses them to: Standard (Disobedience); Goal (Self-glorification); Motive
(Unbelief, Hatred).[4]
4. “Sin may be defined as lack of conformity to the
moral law of God, either in act, disposition, or state.”[5]
Berkhof has a section titled, “THE SCRIPTURAL IDEA OF SIN.” He lists several
observations.[6]
a. SIN IS A SPECIFIC KIND OF EVIL – “Sin is a moral
evil. Most of the names that are used in Scripture to designate sin point to
its moral character…It is not a calamity that came upon man unawares, poisoned
his life, and ruined his happiness, but an evil course which man has
deliberately chosen to follow and which carries untold misery with it.
Fundamentally, it is not something passive, such as a weakness, a fault, or an
imperfection, for which we cannot be held responsible, but an active opposition
to God, and a positive transgression of His law, which constitutes gilt.”
b. SIN HAS AN ABSOLUTE CHARACTER – “While there are
undoubtedly degrees in both [good and evil], there are no gradations between
the good and the evil. The transition from the one to the other is not of a
quantitative, btu of a qualitative character…Sin is not a lesser degree of
goodness, but a positive evil.”
c. “SIN ALWAYS HAS RELATION TO GOD AND HIS WILL” – ”If
from the material point of view moral goodness consists in love to God, then
moral evil must consist in the opposite. It is separation from God, opposition
to God, hatred of God, and this manifests itself in constant transgression of
the law of God in thought, word, and deed. The following passages clearly show
that Scripture contemplates sin in relation to God and His law, either as
written on the tablets of the heart, or as given by Moses.”
d. “SIN INCLUDES BOTH GUILT AND POLLUTION” – “While
many deny that sin includes guilt, this does not comport with the fact that sin
was threatened and is indeed visited with punishment, and clearly contradicts
the plain statements of Scripture.”
e. “SIN HAS ITS SEAT IN THE HEART” – “From this center
its influence and operations spread to the intellect, the will, the affections,
in short, to the entire man, including his body.”
f. “SIN DOES NOT CONSIST EXCLUSIVELY IN OVERT ACTS” –
“Sin does not consist only in overt acts, but also in sinful habits and in a
sinful condition of the soul. These three related to one another as follows:
the sinful state is the basis of the sinful habits, and these manifest
themselves in sinful deeds. There is also truth, however, in the contention
that repeated sinful deeds lead to the establishment of sinful habits. The
sinful acts and dispositions of man must be referred to and find their
explanation in a corrupt nature.”
SIN AND THE LAW
1. In the Garden of Eden, there is only one commandment given to Adam and
Eve. God pointed out the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and forbid them
to eat of its fruit. Does this mean that there were no other ways for Adam and
Eve to sin in the Garden?
2. Before the Law, sin was in the world, even though God’s Law had not been
codified among men (Rom 5:12-14).
3. In the Mosaic Covenant, God laid out the Ten Commandments for the people
to follow:
a. You shall have no other gods before Me.
b. You shall not make yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven
above or on the earth below or in the water under the earth. You shall not
worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God…
c. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD
will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.
d. Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and
do all your work…
e. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the
land which the LORD your God gives you.
f. You shall not murder.
g. You shall not commit adultery.
h. You shall not steal.
i. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
j. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s
wife or his male servant or his female servant or his ox or his donkey or
anything that belongs to your neighbor (Exod 20:3-17).
These Ten Commandments were followed by hundreds of case
laws that the nation of Israel was to follow. If they disobeyed, there would be
curses. But if they obeyed, there would be blessings (Lev 26; Deut 28).
4. In the New Covenant, God promised to put His Law in the hearts of the
people (Jer 31:33). The whole world would await the law of the Messiah (Isa
42:4). Christ came and authoritatively declared His New Covenant Law as an inward
focus that surpasses the exterior focus of the Old Covenant Law (cf. Matt
5:20).[7]
THE
CONSEQUENCES OF SIN
Rom 6:23
CHAPTERS WITH
NO MENTION OF SIN
Gen 1-2; Rev 21-22
THE ORIGIN OF
SIN
1. Sin started with Satan. Satan arrives in Genesis 3 as a fallen being who
is opposed to God. The fall of Satan may be described in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel
28. Whether or not those passages describe Satan, we know enough about him from
other passages to know that he is a fallen angel who caused a third of the angels
to sin. All of that must have occurred before Genesis 3.
2. Genesis 3 describes the original sin of the man and woman. Eve was
deceived into eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil,
which God had forbidden. Adam then ate after her.
a. Paul says that both Adam and Eve sinned, but Adam was not deceived (1 Tim
2:14).
b. Paul puts the blame for sin and death in the world directly on Adam (Rom
5:12).
c.
“Since
God is not the author of sin and does not tempt anyone to sin (James 1:13)
where did sin come from? Many believe that since God is all-powerful, the blame
for sin must belong to him. This is false. Certainly, the origin of sin is a
deep and dark mystery. Sin is irrational with no logical defense. But God did
not cause sin. The capacity for sin existed in created persons since personhood
involves volition (will) and the ability for love and relationships. Yet
personhood also includes the ability not
to do those things. Love and heartfelt obedience cannot be coerced or people
would be machines instead of persons. Personhood involves the potential for
disobedience. Sin occurred because Satan, Adam, and Eve chose to exercise their
volition to disobey and not love. Yet as creatures they cannot escape
accountability to their Creator.”[8]
d.
Sin does not
surprise God. He is able to overcome sin and use it for his glory, but the
origin of sin and blame for sin lie with persons who choose to disobey. This is
true for Satan and fallen angels, and for Adam and Eve and their descendants.”[9]
THE PROBLEM OF EVIL
The existence of evil
and suffering is only explained adequately by the Bible. See Lesson #11.
1.
God created
everything “very good” (Gen 1:31). There was originally no sin or death.
2.
Sin came into
the world through the free actions of Adam. The granting of free will to Adam
does not make God responsible for Adam’s sin.
3.
God indeed
placed the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden where Adam was.
God knew beforehand that Adam would disobey the command not to eat. This
omniscient act does not make God responsible for Adam’s sin.
4.
God cursed the
world because of sin. This does not make God the author of sin. Many ask why
God doesn’t fix the world and stop tragedy. The unpopular answer is that these
tragedies are part of the curse. “God was not bound to shield man from the
consequences of his rebellion.”[10]
5.
God often claims
to be the ultimate cause of calamity, yet He always does so through secondary
means.
6.
Yet God has at
all times poured out grace upon mankind, and He has always held out a promise
of salvation.
7.
It is incorrect
to say that God is some kind of passive bystander and detached observer of the
evil and suffering in the world. He sent His own Son as the suffering servant
to glorify Himself by redeeming the cursed world.
8.
There is a day
of judgment coming in which God will do justice. His wrath for all the elect
has already been poured out on Jesus. One day, His wrath for all the reprobate
will be poured out on them.
9.
God offers eons
of bliss to all who follow Jesus that will make the sufferings of this life
appear to be momentary and light.
10. God
predetermined the Fall of Man, but He planned to use it for His glory. He is
never sinful in His plans to use sin like a smelter uses a furnace to purify
gold.
In the end, we have to
confess that we are creatures, and God is God. How He can sovereignly ordain
sin yet not be the author of sin is mysterious. But it is not illogical. Based
on all of the evidence above, we are assured that He is good and righteous and
just.
THE
CONSEQUENCES OF THE FALL
1. Adam and Eve’s eyes were open to their guilt and shame (Gen 3:7).
2. Fear (Gen 3:8, 10).
3. Hiding from God (Gen 3:10).
4. Blame-shifting (Gen 3:12, 13).
5. Spiritual death
6. Enmity (Rom 8:7; Eph 4:18).
7. Wrath (Rom 1:18; Eph 5:6; Rev 20:11-15).
8. Painful childbirth (Gen 3:16)
9. Marital/Familial Tension (Gen 3:16 [cf 4:7 for the sense of ‘desire’).
10. Strife (Gen 4:8, 23).
11. Hard work (Gen 3:17-19).
12. Physical Death (Gen 3:19)
FORMS OF DEATH
1. Spiritual Death – Spiritual alienation from God.
Eph 2:1, 5; cf. Gen 2:23-24
2. Physical Death
Gen 3:9, 24; 4:8; 5:5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 27, 31; Heb 9:27
3. Eternal Death
Rev 20:6, 11-15
IN CONCLUSION, praise God that
He has redeemed us from sin and death through Jesus Christ! Everyone of us was
locked up in sin, but Christ freed us forever. Now, we are slaves of righteousness
(Rom 6:18), which grants us wonderful freedom, because His commandments
are not burdensome (1 John 5:3). Let us then mortify sin in the flesh,
for mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is
life and peace (Rom 8:6). Blessed be our God who has saved us by such
wonderful grace!
[1]
We will study the covenants and the atonement in later lessons.
[2] Vlach, Unpublished Class
Notes: Theology III at The Master’s Seminary, 96.
[3] Grudem, Systematic Theology,
1254.
[4] Frame, Systematic Theology, 848-849.
[5] Berkhof, Systematic Theology,
191.
[6] Ibid, 190-191.
[7]
See Vlach, The New Covenant Lawgiver: Jesus and Law in Matthew 5:17-48
for a very easy-to-read and concise book on this topic. Other approaches to
the Law and the Christian are to splice the Law into three sections: moral,
civil, and ceremonial. They argue that only the moral law is binding for the
Christian. But I see no evidence of this in Scripture, either or the splitting
of the Law into three parts or for any part of it being binding under the New
Covenant. Hebrews 8:13 explicitly says that the New Covenant makes the Old
Covenant obsolete.
[8]
Vlach, Unpublished Class Notes, 98.
[9]
Vlach, Ibid, 98.
[10]
Vlach, Ibid, 116.
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